Even a bad AP score can be good

Jay Matthews:

I am approaching the 30th anniversary of my Dec. 7, 1982, encounter with East Los Angeles math teacher Jaime Escalante. That day changed my life. If I had not met the guy who was helping so many Hispanic kids master calculus, I wouldn't be writing columns today. I also wouldn't be having frequent arguments about how much low-income students can learn.

Escalante proved that the children of day laborers can do well in challenging Advanced Placement courses if given enough time and encouragement to learn. In 1987, he and his Garfield High School colleague Ben Jimenez were responsible for 26 percent of all Mexican American students in the country who passed AP calculus exams.

Several of these students were not doing well in other subjects. And many people, including some educators, still believe that AP can't help you if you are not already a good student. That is why many schools still bar average students from taking AP.

Posted by Jim Zellmer at December 26, 2012 1:26 AM
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